Shloka 72
Post-cremation Ripening of Karma and the Principal Narakas
पुत्रैरध्यापिता ये च पुत्रैराज्ञापिताश्च ये / ते सर्वे नरकं यान्ति निरयं चाप्यभोजनम्
putrairadhyāpitā ye ca putrairājñāpitāśca ye / te sarve narakaṃ yānti nirayaṃ cāpyabhojanam
పుత్రుల చేత పోషింపబడేవారు, పుత్రుల ఆజ్ఞకు లోబడి జీవించేవారు—అందరూ నరకానికి వెళ్తారు; ఆ నిరయంలో భోజనం కూడా లభించని దుస్థితి ఉంటుంది.
Lord Vishnu (in instruction to Garuda/Vinata-putra)
Afterlife Stage: Naraka
Concept: Household hierarchy and responsibility: improper dependence on children and living under their command is framed as adharma leading to deprivation.
Vedantic Theme: Dharma as social-ethical order (loka-saṅgraha) supporting inner steadiness; disorder fuels suffering within saṃsāra.
Application: Maintain appropriate responsibilities across life stages; cultivate self-reliance and dignified reciprocity; children should support elders, but elders should not abdicate dharmic agency or enable role-reversal rooted in greed/indolence.
Primary Rasa: karuna
Secondary Rasa: bhayanaka
Type: naraka (hunger/deprivation hell)
Related Themes: Garuda Purana: recurring emphasis on anna-dāna, śrāddha feeding, and the post-mortem importance of food offerings; nearby naraka verses stress food-related ethics
FAQs
The verse warns that living in a state of moral weakness—being sustained and controlled by one’s sons in a blameworthy way—can lead to post-death suffering, described as naraka/niraya with deprivation of food.
It links a specific unethical or degrading life-condition to a karmic result: the jīva is said to fall into naraka (infernal realms), experiencing ‘abhojanam’—a condition of hunger or denial of nourishment.
Cultivate dignity, responsibility, and dharmic living—avoid exploitative dependency and harmful family power dynamics; support elders with respect while maintaining ethical autonomy and right conduct.